Roccat Ryos MK Pro
The package itself of the Ryos MK Pro is very stylish and glossy. It clearly shows what you get inside, no surprises there.
The keyboard itself is all black with quite easy to read lettering on the keys even with the light turned off. It is also very protected in the package with both hard plastic covering the keys to prevent the keys from being pressed while in the package as well as scratch protection for the glossy parts.
In the package we also find a quick-installation guide and two replacement keys. These are for Danish users and it is very nice to see extra keys like this instead of keys that are packed with symbols to minimize cost. The Roccat solution seems more user friendly.
The Ryos MK Pro is quite a large keyboard and it features its build in handrest which I personally really like. Some like to use a softer gel type of handrest, but I’m used to the hard plastic one that is used by many manufacturers. With it built in, it also means that it doesn’t slip away which is perfect.
Nothing really special about the looks of the keyboard up front, we have the three T buttons in the front of the keyboard, below the spacebar, and these are used for – anything you want! But in their default state they are used to change the profile that is currently active on the keyboard. A total of five profiles can be configured for a number of different functionality.
Perhaps you want one profile for regular operating system use, one for a specific game and one for another game, while a fourth profile could be used for all other games, for example.
Many keyboards today come with the M keys on the left of the keyboard, the macro keys. These does not have any functionality by default but it is very easy to setup these keys in the software to do pretty much anything you’d like. On a personal note, I remember the first keyboard I tried with the macro keys on the left like this, it took some time to get used to it as it was more or less impossible to adjust my left hand to find the correct keys.
These days though, I can hardly live without it. I both use the macro keys to orient my left hand but of course, I also use the macro keys very actively while for example gaming as I use them for microphone/voice chat functions while in a game. I do not use them for push to talk, but I use them for mute and similar functions which are very useful if you stream and record gameplay.
That is of course not all the functionality with this keyboard as you also get a built in analog sound pass-through connectivity with both headphone and microphone support, but also a USB 2.0 hub with two ports. I love having a USB hub on the keyboard as it is very easy to plug-in my camera, phone or any memory stick or even a memory card reader when it is needed.
Personally I don’t use the soundcard that are built in to a keyboard, or even a pass-through, as I use an external mixer to have full control. However, a pass-through is actually really nice if you for example normally plug in your headphones in the back of your computer. So instead of either crawl under your desk to plug and unplug your headset, or having it plugged in all the time, you have a very convenient connection on your keyboard instead.
Of course, you can still let your headphones be plugged in all the time, but if you want or need to unplug your headphones it becomes a lot easier when the connection is at the back of your keyboard instead of under your desk, in the back of your computer.
The bottom of the keyboard features four large rubber pads as feet and they make sure the keyboard does not slip around at all. You can also flip out two extended feet, just like most other keyboards if you want that tilted feel. We also find some cable routing features so you can route either audio or perhaps a mouse cable under the keyboard. The cable is not detachable which I’ve come to love with the Cooler Master Mech, a function I believe many manufacturers should pick up as it both is very easy to remove your keyboard from the mouse and just move it out of the way if you need to do something else on your desk.
But also, if the cable needs replacement, you don’t need to fiddle around inside the keyboard and hack up a solution – or buy a new keyboard if that is your choice. An exchangeable cable adds to the life of the keyboard for sure, especially a mechanical keyboard that should last a very long time.
With that said, the cable on the Ryos MK Pro is of very nice quality with a braid which I personally like, as I like the stiffness it brings. Some people are just the opposite and I can to some degree that it isn’t the best on mice, but overall I like it. The cable is also 1.8 meter long which should fit for most installations.
The testing of the keyboard is quite simple, just use it a lot! The overall feel of the keyboard is very nice and it’s easy to orient your hands on it. The T keys in the bottom middle can be problematic to stay off at first, but you get used to them.
It is very nice to have the ability to easily switch profiles when needed to have the functions you need for a specific game our perhaps an editing software.
The build quality of the keyboard feels very sturdy and the sound of the brown Cherry MX switches are just pure joy compared to blue that I’ve been using for quite some time. Of course, the feel of the switches are not something that you can take into account really for a keyboard review, not in this case as there are several to choose from and also it is up to the user, you, to decide what you like.
However, the availability of different switches to suit most people is something we can put a grade on and in that case Roccat has done an excellent job with offering four different type of Cherry MX switches.
Extra plus is the lighting and configuration of it, pure fun! But it might be extra useful for LANs and other computer events, but I doubt anyone would use the wave effect or delayed light off functions at home. I generally have a low light level or always turned off, but luckily everyone is not like me so I’m sure all these crazy effects are heavily used by other users out there. I still enjoy them, but I don’t use them every day.
Overall the Roccat Ryos MK Pro is an excellent keyboard with lots of functionality and a very good looking outside. With recent price drops this is a must get for those of you who would like a USB hub handy alongside a great keyboard with lots of options to customize.
All in all, a really great and excellent keyboard! Thanks to Roccat who supports us with review units!
The keyboard itself is all black with quite easy to read lettering on the keys even with the light turned off. It is also very protected in the package with both hard plastic covering the keys to prevent the keys from being pressed while in the package as well as scratch protection for the glossy parts.
In the package we also find a quick-installation guide and two replacement keys. These are for Danish users and it is very nice to see extra keys like this instead of keys that are packed with symbols to minimize cost. The Roccat solution seems more user friendly.
The Ryos MK Pro is quite a large keyboard and it features its build in handrest which I personally really like. Some like to use a softer gel type of handrest, but I’m used to the hard plastic one that is used by many manufacturers. With it built in, it also means that it doesn’t slip away which is perfect.
Nothing really special about the looks of the keyboard up front, we have the three T buttons in the front of the keyboard, below the spacebar, and these are used for – anything you want! But in their default state they are used to change the profile that is currently active on the keyboard. A total of five profiles can be configured for a number of different functionality.
Perhaps you want one profile for regular operating system use, one for a specific game and one for another game, while a fourth profile could be used for all other games, for example.
Many keyboards today come with the M keys on the left of the keyboard, the macro keys. These does not have any functionality by default but it is very easy to setup these keys in the software to do pretty much anything you’d like. On a personal note, I remember the first keyboard I tried with the macro keys on the left like this, it took some time to get used to it as it was more or less impossible to adjust my left hand to find the correct keys.
These days though, I can hardly live without it. I both use the macro keys to orient my left hand but of course, I also use the macro keys very actively while for example gaming as I use them for microphone/voice chat functions while in a game. I do not use them for push to talk, but I use them for mute and similar functions which are very useful if you stream and record gameplay.
That is of course not all the functionality with this keyboard as you also get a built in analog sound pass-through connectivity with both headphone and microphone support, but also a USB 2.0 hub with two ports. I love having a USB hub on the keyboard as it is very easy to plug-in my camera, phone or any memory stick or even a memory card reader when it is needed.
Personally I don’t use the soundcard that are built in to a keyboard, or even a pass-through, as I use an external mixer to have full control. However, a pass-through is actually really nice if you for example normally plug in your headphones in the back of your computer. So instead of either crawl under your desk to plug and unplug your headset, or having it plugged in all the time, you have a very convenient connection on your keyboard instead.
Of course, you can still let your headphones be plugged in all the time, but if you want or need to unplug your headphones it becomes a lot easier when the connection is at the back of your keyboard instead of under your desk, in the back of your computer.
The bottom of the keyboard features four large rubber pads as feet and they make sure the keyboard does not slip around at all. You can also flip out two extended feet, just like most other keyboards if you want that tilted feel. We also find some cable routing features so you can route either audio or perhaps a mouse cable under the keyboard. The cable is not detachable which I’ve come to love with the Cooler Master Mech, a function I believe many manufacturers should pick up as it both is very easy to remove your keyboard from the mouse and just move it out of the way if you need to do something else on your desk.
But also, if the cable needs replacement, you don’t need to fiddle around inside the keyboard and hack up a solution – or buy a new keyboard if that is your choice. An exchangeable cable adds to the life of the keyboard for sure, especially a mechanical keyboard that should last a very long time.
With that said, the cable on the Ryos MK Pro is of very nice quality with a braid which I personally like, as I like the stiffness it brings. Some people are just the opposite and I can to some degree that it isn’t the best on mice, but overall I like it. The cable is also 1.8 meter long which should fit for most installations.
The testing of the keyboard is quite simple, just use it a lot! The overall feel of the keyboard is very nice and it’s easy to orient your hands on it. The T keys in the bottom middle can be problematic to stay off at first, but you get used to them.
It is very nice to have the ability to easily switch profiles when needed to have the functions you need for a specific game our perhaps an editing software.
The build quality of the keyboard feels very sturdy and the sound of the brown Cherry MX switches are just pure joy compared to blue that I’ve been using for quite some time. Of course, the feel of the switches are not something that you can take into account really for a keyboard review, not in this case as there are several to choose from and also it is up to the user, you, to decide what you like.
However, the availability of different switches to suit most people is something we can put a grade on and in that case Roccat has done an excellent job with offering four different type of Cherry MX switches.
Extra plus is the lighting and configuration of it, pure fun! But it might be extra useful for LANs and other computer events, but I doubt anyone would use the wave effect or delayed light off functions at home. I generally have a low light level or always turned off, but luckily everyone is not like me so I’m sure all these crazy effects are heavily used by other users out there. I still enjoy them, but I don’t use them every day.
Overall the Roccat Ryos MK Pro is an excellent keyboard with lots of functionality and a very good looking outside. With recent price drops this is a must get for those of you who would like a USB hub handy alongside a great keyboard with lots of options to customize.
All in all, a really great and excellent keyboard! Thanks to Roccat who supports us with review units!
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